NEW YORK (July 29, 2024) — The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) strongly condemns the Venezuelan authoritarian regime’s recently announced and patently fraudulent election results, giving dictator Nicolás Maduro a victory with 51.20% of the national vote. HRF considers the results announced by the Maduro-controlled National Electoral Council (CNE) patently fraudulent because they directly contradict the exit poll numbers documented by the unified democratic opposition — led by the illegally disqualified candidate María Corina Machado and her replacement, the unity candidate Edmundo González — which gave the democratic opposition candidate the victory with 70% of the national vote.
The numbers published by the Machado and González camp, based on their members’ scrutiny of all voting centers, are largely consistent with the exit poll analysis carried out by the experienced New Jersey-based polling firm Edison Research, which has been deemed the most credible source by the Wall Street Journal’s South America bureau chief, and gave the opposition a projected win with 65% of the vote.
“In a predictable yet outrageous move, the 25-year-old regime’s electoral mouthpiece has once again announced fraudulent election results, falsely claiming that the dictatorship has won. This blatant attempt to legitimize a rigged outcome is a slap in the face to the Venezuelan people and shows the degree of shamelessness the dictatorship will reach in order to maintain its illegitimate grip on power,” said HRF chief executive Thor Halvorssen. “HRF stands in solidarity with the brave people of Venezuela, who deserve their votes to be counted and validated, instead of what has actually taken place during a contest that was neither free nor fair, but where the Venezuelan people massively and courageously mobilized in order to vote the dictatorship out,” he said.
In the lead-up to the elections, dictator Nicolás Maduro had ominously threatened that if he lost, there would be a “bloodbath” in Venezuela. This chilling warning was a blatant attempt to intimidate voters, stifle opposition, and undermine the democratic process, but despite these threats, the Venezuelan people still got the vote out in historic fashion and are now in the streets peacefully demanding their votes to be properly counted and asking the dictatorship to allow for a transition to democracy. Furthermore, the regime’s refusal to allow independent international observers to monitor the elections is a clear indication of its intent to hide the truth. The Organization of American States (OAS) and the European Union (EU) were both denied the ability to send electoral observation missions to Venezuela. Also, in the days prior to the election, numerous international observers — including former presidents and legislators from democratic countries — were arbitrarily denied entry into Venezuela or expelled from the country, highlighting the government’s desperation to conceal its electoral manipulation. The majority of observers were not independent and, instead, were hardcore supporters of the regime.
“In tune with the spirit of the Inter-American Democratic Charter that recognizes the Venezuelan people’s right to democracy, the world must reject the fraudulent results announced by the regime and demand that the regime step down, while supporting the millions of Venezuelans that have taken to the streets to peacefully demand their votes to be counted. We urge the international community to join us in demanding the Maduro regime to step down so that genuine democratic reforms can happen in Venezuela and so that the regime is held accountable for two decades of tyranny and gross human rights abuses,” said HRF’s chief legal and policy officer, Javier El-Hage. “This latest mockery of an electoral process characterized by the silencing of opposition voices, and the manipulation of the electoral results once again undermine the Venezuelan people’s fundamental human right to free and fair elections, and can’t be allowed to stand,” he said.
Voters in Venezuelan elections have for decades lacked the freedom to decide to vote against the Chavista regime, and the process has lacked the basic fairness that would allow the opposition to compete on a reasonably level playing field, with the mass media being tightly controlled by the regime and hundreds of political prisoners and iconic political leaders — such as former Caracas mayors Leopoldo López and Alcalde Ledezma — that have had to seek asylum above. The ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) has maintained power since 1999, when the then Hugo Chávez-led government started implementing measures to suppress opposition, including restricting candidate registrations, censoring media, and manipulating electoral processes. The regime-controlled CNE, responsible for overseeing elections, is dominated by overt government loyalists, leading to corruption and bias in the way elections are carried out.
Historically, the government has used tools like the “Tascón List” (which published the names of Venezuelans who had voted in a recall referendum against Chávez) to punish opposition voters and the “Maisanta Program” to reward loyalists, creating a climate of fear and coercion. The Tascón List, named after Chavista legislator Luis Tascón, was used to identify and blacklist opposition supporters, denying them access to public services and employment. Similarly, the Maisanta Program was used to target opponents for political discrimination, including by rewarding government supporters, creating a system of patronage and dependence. These factors have led to widespread agreement about the lack of democratic legitimacy of Venezuela’s electoral processes, with independent watchdogs, including HRF, long considering them to be neither free nor fair.
The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) is a nonpartisan nonprofit organization that promotes and protects human rights globally, with a focus on closed societies.
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